Portable MP3 players, iPods etc

FUKKET · Post by **FUKKET** » 03 Aug 2009, 06:23

I'm in the market for a portable Mp3 player.

I have been looking at the iPod classic 120GB one, but have read A LOT of bad reviews about it; crashing, hardware failures, codec issues, shitty sound quality, freezing etc etc...

Anyone have the 120GB classic?

What do the MABB folk recommend in the mp3 device world?

i'm currently thinking about a new Sony one (straight outta Japan) or a iPod touch.

M.Bison · Post by **M.Bison** » 03 Aug 2009, 07:36

I've heard nothing but good things about a Korean company called Cowon, i'd have their S9 model if I wasn't so poor.

Abzu · Post by **Abzu** » 03 Aug 2009, 09:50

Any media players with HDD based storage are going to be prone to failure.

FUKKET · Post by **FUKKET** » 03 Aug 2009, 10:46

[quote name="abzu"]Any media players with HDD based storage are going to be prone to failure.[/quote]

true

Methuselah Honeysuckle · Post by **Methuselah Honeysuckle** » 03 Aug 2009, 10:47

ive got a 160gb that i bought probably 2 years ago. mine hasnt had any of the above problems.

FUKKET · Post by **FUKKET** » 03 Aug 2009, 10:51

As I'm still old school (currently using an awesome old Discman), I listen to CDs only & cart the discman around everywhere.

I used to burn my mp3 stuff to CD, but now realise it's a waste.

What i could do, is keep it old school, and (in Japan) get some uber discman that has mp3 with it, or mp3 CD capabilities (i could burn stuff to a CD_RW and wipe arfter a while).

Still the whole burning process is annoying tho...

it's all so perplexing....

FUKKET · Post by **FUKKET** » 03 Aug 2009, 10:56

[quote name="Nick"]ive got a 160gb that i bought probably 2 years ago. mine hasnt had any of the above problems.[/quote]

iPod yeah?

How's the sound?

(good to hear feedback from fellow metallers... we want clear tops, deep bass & chunky mids).

Back in the day, I'd take Covenant or FFF to shops to test a stereo I might buy - as I know the sound of these albums so well, I want to make sure it's all there.

Methuselah Honeysuckle · Post by **Methuselah Honeysuckle** » 03 Aug 2009, 11:03

only real sound difference i notice is volume change album to album. i only use it when im driving though. not sure how anything sounds with headphones.

Abzu · Post by **Abzu** » 03 Aug 2009, 11:08

[quote name="Nick"]ive got a 160gb that i bought probably 2 years ago. mine hasnt had any of the above problems.[/quote]

Give it a good solid shaking while it is reading or writing data, then say goodnight.

Hard drives are mechanical in nature, using a drive head to read and write data to platters (much like a record on a turntable). Anything with mechanical moving parts is prone to failure, especially when being exposed to much jostling about. Solid state ftw

Methuselah Honeysuckle · Post by **Methuselah Honeysuckle** » 03 Aug 2009, 11:13

my shifter in the truck has taken a beating from the ipod

Lavabug · Post by **Lavabug** » 03 Aug 2009, 13:11

[quote name="abzu"]
[quote name="Nick"]ive got a 160gb that i bought probably 2 years ago. mine hasnt had any of the above problems.[/quote]

Give it a good solid shaking while it is reading or writing data, then say goodnight.

Hard drives are mechanical in nature, using a drive head to read and write data to platters (much like a record on a turntable). Anything with mechanical moving parts is prone to failure, especially when being exposed to much jostling about. Solid state ftw

[/quote]

My 30Gb Ipod is over 4 years old and has been on several trips, dropped several times(even without a protective skin), cracked open a few times for battery changes, survived a short circuit that blew the output jack(replaced easily) because I hooked it up to my improperly wired DIY amp and it's still holding up. It helps if you have a rubber case/skin for it like I do, which is like 1cm thick. Just treat stuff well and they'll last. SS is great but getting anything with decent capacity is going to be very expensive, I'd wait a bit til SS's price goes down if you simply can't live with moving parts.

Otherwise you'll be stuck with 8-32Gb.

shadowalk · Post by **shadowalk** » 03 Aug 2009, 16:41

Got me a 2G iPod Shuffle which is only about two inches long and about an inch high and it's got a clip with which you can attach it on your shorts. Been always carrying it around whenever I go to class or whenever I go the gym and this thing can really take a beating. Fell on the ground far too many times, got shaken and all that and it's still alive and kicking. The battery's lasted for more than two years now and I still don't see a reason to change it. I'm impressed, to say the least.

FUKKET · Post by **FUKKET** » 03 Aug 2009, 16:44

[quote name="abzu"](much like a record on a turntable).[/quote]

i always say this to the damn kids who come in abusing their laptops, try & explain they can't move around the laptop when it's still shutting down.

FUKKET · Post by **FUKKET** » 03 Aug 2009, 16:46

like with most audio devices old school & original are more sturdy (old 70s stereos rock, as do original iPods & such).

FUKKET · Post by **FUKKET** » 03 Aug 2009, 16:47

[quote name="M.Bison"]I've heard nothing but good things about a Korean company called Cowon, i'd have their S9 model if I wasn't so poor.[/quote]

never heard of

* looks up *

http://www.cowonamerica.com/products/cowon/s9/

Hugo. · Post by **Hugo.** » 04 Aug 2009, 02:51

[quote name="FUKKET"]
[quote name="Nick"]ive got a 160gb that i bought probably 2 years ago. mine hasnt had any of the above problems.[/quote]

iPod yeah?

How's the sound?

(good to hear feedback from fellow metallers... we want clear tops, deep bass & chunky mids).

[/quote]

Very little of the sound is down to the player. Most mp3 players have an inbuilt EQ anyway.

To be honest, i use the mp3 player on my phone exclusively. It's way less cumbersome and since the particular model I have (Nokia 5310) uses a regular jack input, I can use my sennheisers and not some shitty stock phones. The only major limitation is the memory, but even thats upgradeable.

neckred · Post by **neckred** » 04 Aug 2009, 06:32

i suppose i was anti-mp3 player, until i realized how great they were for vehicular use

Abzu · Post by **Abzu** » 04 Aug 2009, 08:12

I tried switching to my phone's music player because is has a microSD card slot making that very practical. Unfortunately, the music player is a shit on the Samsung Propel. fucking cockl that it is cannot scroll through songs, does not remember where I left off, and just lacks so many things a music player should have. If it was cool, I was going to sell my iPod and just carry the one fucking device. Im thinking about an LG Xenon. Anyone have experience with its music player?

FUKKET · Post by **FUKKET** » 04 Aug 2009, 11:13

[quote name="neckred"]i suppose i was anti-mp3 player, until i realized how great they were for vehicular use[/quote]

this is my main reason for wanting one also

Abzu · Post by **Abzu** » 04 Aug 2009, 20:09

Avoid the exploding iPods.

Noyka · Post by **Noyka** » 04 Aug 2009, 20:58

I have a 130 gig ipod video that I just got.

I got it as a replacement for my 80 gig ipod video that was apparently the whole line or something was faulty or that's what BEst Buy said. I got the warranty for it so when the battery stopped charging, which it did about 10 times before they gave me store credit to get a replacement ipod thanks to the warranty, I'd usually just get another refurbished ipod.

I've had my new ipod for about three months and had no issues with it yet. If you do get an ipod be sure to get the extended warranty on it if you can. Also some people complain about bass and what not with ipods but I think that's more in the headphones themselves.

FUKKET · Post by **FUKKET** » 05 Aug 2009, 04:45

thanks gang.

So I've always wondered, how are the iPod headphones that come with it? Surely they're OK as majority of people are using them (dumb white leads).

But then again, majority of people are morons (no one of MABB of course

) when it comes to knowing good sounding music....?

zim · Post by **zim** » 05 Aug 2009, 05:04

for headphones i prefer the big over-sized type

Abzu · Post by **Abzu** » 05 Aug 2009, 08:21

The included earbuds are... okay I suppose. $20 SkullCandy earbuds will sound better. For true audiophiles, there are some seriously good sounding noise-canceling earbuds or headphones out there.

FUKKET · Post by **FUKKET** » 05 Aug 2009, 09:16

I don't like the noise cancelling ones. Mainly due to being 'blocked-off' from the world and where I walk to work, even without head phones I nearly get run over every day.

jawn galliano · Post by **jawn galliano** » 05 Aug 2009, 09:23

yeah the stock earbuds are not particularly comfy nor anything to write home about in terms of sound quality. you can probably get a nice set of earbuds for under $100 without noise canceling though. i personally prefer the larger studio-style headphones but obviously they're not too great for walking aorund and such (especially the pair i have with like 9ft of cable dangling about

)

Abzu · Post by **Abzu** » 05 Aug 2009, 09:34

Oh geezus noise canceling is life-fail for outdoors lol

There are very good sounding ones that arent so noise canceling also

FUKKET · Post by **FUKKET** » 05 Aug 2009, 10:13

the best headphones (buds) I've ever had where the ones that came with my Sony tape walkman back when I was 13.

I got THE BEST walkman available & these headphones kicked arse. I had them for a while but they broke.

Abzu · Post by **Abzu** » 05 Aug 2009, 11:16

Sony Walkman

jawn galliano · Post by **jawn galliano** » 05 Aug 2009, 11:19

only applies if you're referring to the portable cassette players

Methuselah Honeysuckle · Post by **Methuselah Honeysuckle** » 05 Aug 2009, 11:23

ive still got a stash of tapes

jawn galliano · Post by **jawn galliano** » 05 Aug 2009, 11:24

i have a tape adapter for my mp3 player!

what i really need is a car charger for said, it's not gonna last me the whole trip :(

Methuselah Honeysuckle · Post by **Methuselah Honeysuckle** » 05 Aug 2009, 11:28

i made sure to get one that charged it and let it play via the radio

jawn galliano · Post by **jawn galliano** » 05 Aug 2009, 11:36

i was gonna buy a charger but best buy wanted goddamn $30 for the cheapest splendid mate of mine on the rack, so i said no :no:

also, cassette > fm transmitter

Abzu · Post by **Abzu** » 05 Aug 2009, 11:37

[quote name="Famous Mortimer"]

only applies if you're referring to the portable cassette players

[/quote]

You're goddamned right. The last one I bought was 5 years ago and I still love it.

jawn galliano · Post by **jawn galliano** » 05 Aug 2009, 11:38

did you purchase this thing new? i didn't know they were still selling them five years ago o-0

Methuselah Honeysuckle · Post by **Methuselah Honeysuckle** » 05 Aug 2009, 11:39

[quote name="Famous Mortimer"]i was gonna buy a charger but best buy wanted goddamn $30 for the cheapest splendid mate of mine on the rack, so i said no :no:

also, cassette > fm transmitter[/quote]

yeah but i would have to have a tape deck on the stereo which i do not.

jawn galliano · Post by **jawn galliano** » 05 Aug 2009, 11:42

battery-powered boom box!

Methuselah Honeysuckle · Post by **Methuselah Honeysuckle** » 05 Aug 2009, 11:47

90% of the use mine gets is in mine truck

Abzu · Post by **Abzu** » 05 Aug 2009, 11:47

[quote name="Famous Mortimer"]

did you purchase this thing new? i didn't know they were still selling them five years ago o-0[/quote]

Yep yep yep. They still make them.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sony_Walkm ... ed_walkman

Abzu · Post by **Abzu** » 05 Aug 2009, 11:50

For the record: WM-FX197